Light of Day

Set in an industrial suburb of Cleveland, Light of Day follows Joe Rasnick, a factory worker who spends his nights playing guitar in a rock band called the Barbusters. The group also includes his sister Patti, a rebellious single mother. Their conservative mother disapproves of the lives they have chosen, and the friction between her and Patti runs deep. Joe finds himself pulled between his responsibility to his family and his commitment to the band, while both siblings try to hold their lives together amid financial strain and personal conflict.

Paul Schrader directed from his own screenplay, with Rob Cohen and Keith Barish producing. It was the sixth of the twenty-three films Schrader has directed, arriving between Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters and Patty Hearst. Michael J. Fox plays Joe, Gena Rowlands plays the siblings' mother Janette, and Joan Jett plays Patti. Michael McKean, Thomas G. Waites and Cherry Jones appear in supporting roles, among a credited cast of seventy-three.

Released in February 1987, the film runs 107 minutes and took in about 10 million dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds 5.6 out of 10 from roughly 3,600 votes, and on TMDB 5.5 out of 10 from a much smaller sample. A critics' rating of 5.4 out of 10 from seventeen reviews places it slightly below the audience scores.